When the world’s best cyclists arrive in Kigali for the UCI Road World Championships, which take place from September 21 to 28, they will experience the thrill of competition, the beauty of our landscapes and the warmth of our people. But they will also, whether they realize it or not, be participating in a carefully choreographed image-laundering operation.
The other reality of Rwanda โ which President Paul Kagame is desperate to hide โ is one of silenced journalists, disappeared opposition figures and millions of Congolese who have been victims of a conflict in which Rwanda plays a major role, even while refusing to admit it. As a Rwandan journalist who has witnessed this repression firsthand, I cannot remain silent.
Cycling fans will not see the darker side of a country that the American NGO Freedom House has characterized as “not free,” giving it a score of 21 out of 100 in its 2025 evaluation. They will not report that the media landscape is so restrictive that Reporters Without Borders ranks Rwanda 146th out of 180 countries for press freedom. They will not hear about the 17 journalists who have been imprisoned, disappeared or killed since Kagame’s regime came to power after the 1994 genocide, nor about the many others living in exile, such as myself.
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